January 16, 2005
60 minutes And Tim Howard
I don't normally watch 60 Minutes, but in the waning moments of the AFC Divisional Playoff Game between New England and Indianapolis, I saw a promo that tonight's show would include a feature on Manchester United's American goalkeeper, Tim Howard.
And that made my ears prick up a little. Because while Howard had something of a storybook season in his first year in the English Premier League, supplanting former starting goalie and 1998 World Cup hero Fabien Barthez, and being named best keeper in the league, the 2004-05 campaign has been something of a disappointment for Howard.
After starting the season as the team's top keeper, Howard was replaced after a few matches by Roy Carroll, and with the exception of an appearance in a FA Cup match against Exeter last Saturday, Howard has been the odd man out in the Manchester nets. There's even talk that the team is looking hard for a new starting goalkeeper, in lieu of turning the reins back to Howard.
Don't get me wrong, Howard is a great story whether he's playing with Man U or just riding the bench, take that from one American who roots everyday for him to return to Man U's starting lineup. And it's an even better story because the New Jersey native has overcome Tourette's Syndrome to claw his way to the top in the world's most competitive football league.
So as I watched tonight, I waited for some indication from Steve Kroft, who anchored the piece, that Howard wasn't playing right now. Needless to say, I wasn't surprised when it didn't come. Over and over again, Howard was simply referred to as goalie for Manchester United. And in the online companion piece to the story, you find this passage:
Howard has a multi-million dollar contract with England's famed Manchester United, and knows mistakes in goal could cost him his job.
Now, is this a huge ethical lapse? No, not really. But ask yourself this: Why not just say exactly what's happening in a brief postscript after the piece -- something I've seen 60 Minutes do more times than I can remember over the years. Was it just an oversight, or were the folks at 60 Minites afraid that a coda like that might take a little bit of the edge off of a feel-good story?
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Tracked on January 17, 2005 11:11 AM
Geez, you're making me not want to watch my DVR.
One correction -- Howard also played in a League Cup semifinal against Chelsea. He recorded a shutout (clean sheet, if you prefer) in both matches, though Heinze had to clear one off the line against Chelsea. He had a shaky clearance or two, but he had one brilliant save against Chelsea and apparently a good one to prevent a colossal upset against Exeter.
So a lot of people were hoping that he'd get the call Saturday against Liverpool, especially since Roy Carroll's last outing included the biggest blunder you're likely to see by a goalkeeper and a ref's assistant. No luck.
The only thing I can think of to be generous to 60 Minutes here is that they may have regarded the situation as too fluid to sum up. But whatever happens in the next month (transfer window through the end of the month), Tim's going through some serious adversity. Isn't that what journalists crave?
Posted by:
at January 16, 2005 10:06 PM
Could it be that the segment and interviews were done before he was sent to the bench? A lot of decisions like that are simply due to deadlines and such.
Posted by:
at January 16, 2005 11:47 PM
60 Minutes never lets the truth get in the way of a good story, no matter the subject matter.
Posted by:
at January 18, 2005 04:10 PM
Howard was signed by Man Utd (or ManUre, as I like to call them) at a time a couple of years ago when U.S. keepers were in fashion. Brad Friedel was doing great at Blackburn, Kasey Keller was the starter at Spurs, so never one to miss a trend, Man U picked up Howard. His first year was good, so I don't know why Ferguson favors Carroll now -- I'd rate them equally. Though in the replay at Exeter today, Howard did make a grave error on a punchout. Luckily it didn't result in a goal, but it's clear to me that his confidence is shaken if he makes a gaffe like that on a fairly routine play. Let's hope Tim is back in the nets full time soon.
Posted by:
at January 19, 2005 08:06 PM
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